You've Got a Piece of Me
by ale-la-pazza1
Summary: A crossover fic between JK&FE set after 4x07 of Skins and after 4x10 of Lost but instead of being in 2007, it's 2010 and some things are different . The first chapters are focused on once couple only till they all meet in a difficult situation.
1. Chapter 1

_Chapter 1:_

It's after six and he still stuck around at the hospital, he didn't want be late.

Not tonight.

Kate said she had made him a special dinner, and he looked forward to it. Lately things were great; Jack was almost scared to think about how good they were for fear of jinxing their happiness. They've been engaged for a month, and even though the date hadn't been set yet, Kate was already planning the whole thing. Their house was now full of brochures with possible venues, various bridal magazines and also brochures for possible places to go on their honeymoon. He smiled at himself; he still couldn't believe that after what they had been through finally the good star was on their side. He finished his last charter and headed out of the hospital; he couldn't wait to be home. The traffic was terrible at this hour but he needed to go downtown and pick something up for her. Jack didn't know why but he had a feeling Kate was going to tell him something important, he just couldn't quite put his finger on it. He also wanted to surprise her too. He stops by the florist, he wants to pick her up some roses, but then something come to his mind and he rapidly changes his order. He knows it's an odd request but luckily the florist doesn't let him down and gives him what he wants. It takes him another half hour to finally get home but he's too happy to even care. As soon as he enters the house he spots Kate cooking, he quickly sneaks up behind her and gently kisses her neck.

She was shocked; she was so focused on making the dinner that she didn't realize Jack had come home. Kate gives him a little kiss, "You're finally home! I was starting to think you ditched me for my bad cooking skills," she says as she begins to serve the dinner. Jack begins to help her, "Sorry babe, I closed my last charter at six and was stuck in traffic. Dinner smells good, I hope it tastes half as good as it smells." Kate gently pushes him, "You don't get to laugh at my cooking skills, and you do know you'll be stuck with me forever, right?"

The dinner is on the table and Kate lights the two candles. They're ready to eat. They start to make small talk, asking how each others days had been. Kate has done her usual errands and has tried to come up with a date for the big day while Jack has been stuck in the O.R. all morning; later being busy with paper work. Soon dinner is over and Kate convinces Jack to go in the living room to watch some TV while she finishes doing the dishes.

She has to get him out of the room, she wasn't done preparing the gift yet and she didn't want to see her surprise ruined.

She quickly finishes and puts all the plates in the dishwasher. Grabbing the cheesecake and the gift, she heads out into the living room. Jack looks half asleep. Kate is really worried because he's been working so much lately so that he would be able to take more days off for their honeymoon. She lays the desert and the gift on the table and turns the television off. He had been watching Friends. "He must have been really tired to fall asleep watching his favorite show," she says to herself not wanting to wake him. Jack opens his eyes anyway, "Hey, I didn't mean to wake you up," Kate says in almost a whisper. "Don't worry. I wouldn't have missed dessert for any reason!" he quickly replies. Kate cuts him a big piece, cutting a smaller slice for herself. Jack quickly devours the slice. It's his favorite dessert and she has been getting really good at making it. When they finish Kate puts the present in from of him, a surprised look on his face. Jack had thought that Kate wanted to tell him something, a present wasn't something he had imagined. "A present? Well, luckily I have something for you too" he says as he gets up, looking for his gift. It was in the pocket of his jacket, he takes it hoping that she won't throw it back at him. Jack puts his present next to hers, "Kate, I want you to open your gift first. If you don't like it, please don't throw it at me" he says laughing. Kate wants to laugh too, knowing that her present isn't the kind that can be easily thrown back at her. "Jack, I'd never throw it back at you, no matter how ugly it can be" she says trying to hide her nerves. It's almost time for the truth. She slowly opens the gift; in it are a bunch of seeds. Kate grins from ear to ear as she recognizes what kind of seeds they are, guava seeds, like the ones he brought her almost 3 years ago as a peace offering after a fight they had. Jack is a bit more relaxed now; at least he can clearly tell his little gift is appreciated. "It's for our garden," he tells her, "And what's a garden without guava, right?" Kate answers him by quoting what he said when he had first given her the seeds. Now it's Jack's turn, silently asks for permission to open the gift. Kate doesn't her trust her voice, so she simply nods. As Jack slowly begins to open it, the contents leave him a little puzzled. "It's a baby sock," Jack says as he holds it in his hand, staring at it for a minute before it finally dawns on him. "Kate, are you pregnant?"


	2. Chapter 2

_Chapter 2:_

Effy wakes up and the first thing she sees is Freddie at her side. That's when she notices where they're at, she's back at the clinic, back where it had all started. She doesn't understand, she thought she was better, she thought that Dr. Foster had fixed her but at the end of the day he had ended up making her worse. He forced her into giving up all her friends, her old self, her memories and most importantly he had convinced her of giving up Freddie. He had led her to believe that Freddie was the reason why she went crazy in the first place, while in reality he was the very thing that kept her going. She was so ashamed, she had said horrible things to Freddie earlier and yet there he was, he wasn't going to give up on her, not like she had. She tried to apologize to Freddie; "I didn't mean what I said to you. I'm so stupid." He had made it clear that she didn't need to. She was so bloody tired, she was barely able to keep her eyes open but she still manages to say I love you a couple more times before she falls asleep.

Her dreams were not pleasant. She keeps seeing a room with a man full of hate and death, just like she had before. She wakes up screaming and crying. She seeks Freddie's hand. She needs him to hold hers but Freddie isn't by her side, she decides to pick up her phone and try calling him, but she gets no answer. She tries again a couple more times and he still doesn't pick up his damn phone. She keeps thinking that this isn't good, Freddie always answers his phone when she calls, no matter where he is or what he's doing. He never leaves her alone. She tries one more time but this time the phone has been disconnected, now she knows for sure that something isn't right and she can't stay in that place waiting for something to happen. She rushes out of bed and she gets dressed, quickly escaping from the clinic and heading straight to Freddie's place, but he's not there. She wanders around his room looking for something that will tell her where the fuck Freddie might be. That's when it hits her; John Foster's look when Freddie told him to fuck off. He wouldn't hurt Freddie. Would he? She doesn't have time to wonder, she runs over to the counselor's place right away. When she gets there the first thing she see makes her heart literally stop.

Blood. A lot of blood, splattered across the window that's next to the door. She tries to keep it together but all she really wants to do is scream. She doesn't even know how but she manages to burst through the locked door. What was waiting for her on the other side is something that Effy will never forget. Freddie lying on the ground in a pool of blood, his head severely injured. Effy can't keep it together anymore, she starts screaming and crying, holding Freddie to her and begging him to stay with her. Effy can't seem to stop crying. She takes her phone and immediately calls for an ambulance. She tells them to hurry. She never believed in God - not even when Tony had been in the bus accident. Right now she had to believe that Freddie would be alright more than anything else. It didn't take the ambulance long to get there, as soon as they did the paramedics began examining Freddie, loading him into the ambulance. Effy climbs in after them. She wasn't about to leave him alone. She keeps praying, she just can't lose him now. She wouldn't even be able to deal with the thought of losing him. She keeps her eyes shut, not wanting to see Freddie like that. With her eyes shut she sees her Freddie; skating, cycling, kissing her, making love to her, telling her that he fucking loves her. That's her Freddie, she needs to see that Freddie all right and soon. As soon as they get to the hospital he's immediately taken into surgery and she is left all alone. She couldn't help but think that loneliness is a feeling that will haunt her forever if Freddie doesn't make it. Her thoughts are suddenly interrupted by the arrival of Karen, Freddie's dad and her mom. She's still crying when her mother hugs her so firmly that her breath is almost taken away. The next thing she knows, Karen is crying on her shoulder asking her, "Why my brother? Why did this have to happen to him?" Effy wishes she didn't know the answer. It was all her fault. Her illness and the need of therapy had almost killed Freddie. If she didn't love him as much as she did he would be all right. If he didn't love her as much as he did he would have never meet Foster and he would be all right. She couldn't stop thinking. She needed Freddie, but maybe Freddie needed to be away from her to be alright. After hours of waiting, the doctors come to meet them, "The he was very lucky to be found just in time. We had to operate on him 3 times and his recovery will be long and very painful. But he should be okay. Although, we will need to take more tests to make sure we didn't miss anything." Effy is still crying. She couldn't believe that God had listened to her prayers - her of all people. She asks the doctor when she would be able to see him. The doctor replies to her that visits won't be allowed for a couple of days, at the very least. He would need to be monitored all the time to make sure he doesn't have any complications.

Effy smiles for the first time in what seemed a lifetime. As she closes her eyes, all she can see is Freddie smiling back at her.


	3. Chapter 3

_Chapter 3:_

The question was still hanging in the air, Kate felt like she had lost her ability to speak. Jack was still waiting for answer, even though the present was enough of an answer in itself. When he had said "It's yellow. So you don't know if it's a boy or a girl, right?" Kate still couldn't speak, she begins to cry, and those damn hormones were ruining her. Jack gives her a hug, he doesn't add anything else, he just holds her firmly, letting her know that he's there for her. She finally manages to say, "Jack, yes, I'm pregnant. I didn't know how to tell you so I thought I would show you instead. Sorry for the sock-ambush." Kate manages to smile, she's happy that he's smiling too because he is obviously happy about this. "How far are you? How long have you known about this? How are you feeling? Do you need anything?" he goes on rambling; he's super excited, he didn't expect this surprise and he couldn't be happier about it. Kate tried to gather her thoughts so she could respond to him properly. "Babe, slow down! I'm about 7 weeks and I only found out about it yesterday. I didn't tell you right away because I wanted it to be the right moment. Right now I'm feeling okay, but my mood seems to change pretty quickly and I don't need anything, just a little more of this." She leans in towards him so that he can hug her tighter. They stay there for a little while until Kate decides it's time for bed, "Come on, we both had a long day and it's time for us to get some sleep." She starts taking the sock out of his hand; he had been staring at it with a huge grin on his face ever since she confirmed the pregnancy. From the looks of it seemed as if he almost wanted to marry the sock instead of her. Jack offers to clean up what they had left on table but she didn't want to hear it, he was sleeping before her announcement and he should be sleeping right now. They go upstairs and Kate prepares the bed while Jack sets the alarm clock. As they begin to get into bed, right before Jack falls asleep he turns around and kisses Kate's still flat stomach. She doesn't know if it's the hormones or the sweetness of his gesture but she can start to feel some tears forming in her eyes, she quickly kisses him and they fall asleep.

The alarm clock suddenly awakes their sleep, Jack wishes he didn't have to work. All Jack wants to do is spend the day in bed with Kate, just enjoying themselves, but life doesn't stop just because he's happy and in love. Jack gets up, reluctantly, to take a shower and head to work, while Kate tries to get some more sleep, she had been so tired. After a couple hours of sleep she felt ready to face the day. She quickly takes a shower and goes out; she wanted to look at some wedding dresses, which she spends more than 2 hours looking at the different kinds. Kate couldn't help but think that there wouldn't be any model which would be pretty enough, and that will actually be able to fit her once she starts showing her pregnancy. Highly discouraged, she calls Jack's office asking his secretary if he had any surgeries during his lunchtime, she had an idea but she needed to discuss it with him first. Kate stops by a Burger King to get two burgers, otherwise Jack wouldn't eat anything; he's so focused on work that sometimes he doesn't have lunch at all. She arrives early so she waits for him at his office, dropping the food on the desk. She starts rearranging all the photos; first a picture of when he was a kid playing football with his dad, then a family photo from when he was twenty, a graduation picture, the picture of their first date and a bunch of other pictures of them together. Jack enters the office and is pleasantly surprised to see Kate there, "Hey! What are you doing here?" he asks while walking to his desk. "Oh, I was just moving some photos around. I thought I'd surprise you with lunch," she replies while opening the bag. Jack makes room for them on the floor so they can sit and eat. They try to steal each other's food and start laughing like a bunch of teenagers. After eating their food, Kate starts to explain her idea to Jack. "So today I tried finding a dress for the wedding and realized that I wouldn't find any that were pretty enough when my stomach starts showing, so I was wondering if maybe you'd be ok if we moved the wedding to an earlier date?" Jack listens and asks her, "How soon are we talking about? Because I think our main problem will be finding a place to get married that will be available." Kate sees his point but she really doesn't want to look huge on her wedding day. She knows there must be a solution for their problem; they just have to find it. Jack interrupts her thoughts, "Kate, I think I might have found a solution, but I have to know beforehand if you're ok with not getting married in a church." Kate simply nods so he keeps going, "We can get married in two weeks in my mother's garden. We can have both the ceremony and the reception there. Is it too soon?" Kate can't believe how quickly Jack has come up with the perfect solution! "Jack, it's perfect! We'll need a little help but I think we can make it. I think I even found the perfect dress that will still fit me in two weeks. We just need to decide our honeymoon destination though," she explains to him. He gets up to take a brochure he had been looking at for a couple of days now to show her his idea. Kate takes it from his hand and she sees the place and says "London. Are we going to London?


	4. Chapter 4

_Chapter 4:_

After leaving the hospital Effy heads home, her mind is spinning so much with the thousand thoughts she had. All she wanted to do was to lay down, close her eyes, and hopefully not think anymore. As soon as got home she searched in her closet for some clothes to sleep in, she finds one of Freddie's shirts and a pair of boxers, not even thinking about it, she puts them on and lays down in bed. His shirt still carries his scent, she's almost fooled into thinking he's right there with her, holding her while she tried to sleep.

She's still alone and so is he.

She tries to sleep but she keeps thinking how all of this is her fault. She should have never let him in; he'd be much better off without her, now she feels as if she's broken in a million pieces. She decides to get up, she knows she won't get any sleep and decides to call the only person, beside Freddie, who would understand her. "Hey Tony, it's me;" she almost whispers. "Effy? how are you? Mum told me what happened, I tried to call but you weren't allowed to receive phone calls in the clinic. So are you out yet?" he asks. Effy replies quietly; "I ran away. Something shitty happened Tony. My counselor tried to kill my boyfriend," on the other side of the phone Tony is speechless. He tries to understand what she's whispering "What? Your doctor tried to kill Freddie? Why? Is he alright? How are you?" his questions begin to slowly affect Effy and she tries to come up with a good explanation; "Yes, he's very bad Tony, I'm not allowed to see him yet. The doctors said he should be fine, but you should have seen him when I found him. It was almost as bad as you were…" she can't help but begin to sob a little. She's turning into such a whiner, but sometimes life really kicks you in the ass. Tony doesn't need her to say so, he already knows she's blaming herself for all of this. "Eff, you know it's not your fault right? You shouldn't be blaming yourself." Tony knows her but that doesn't stop her from doing it anyway; "Of course it's my bloody fault! If I hadn't been such a nut case he would have never met Foster. It's also his fault; why did he have to love me? Why didn't he run away when I started losing it? I told you it's not worth caring for people, this is what happens, it's happened to you too!" she spills it all out. If she was going to lay everything out it would only be to Tony, no one else would understand. "I already told you that I don't buy this crap. You think love kills? You think if you love someone bad things are gonna happen? It's not like that Eff and you should know it," Tony replies. Effy knows this deep inside but she can't help but feel this way, she's torn, she wants to be with Freddie. She loves him like she's never loved anyone else before, but on the other hand she wants him to be well and that can only mean she has to disappear from his life. Tony knows that she's thinking way too much and he has to let her understand that giving up is not the solution, "I can almost hear your thoughts Eff. I know you're probably thinking you should disappear from his life but let me tell you something; it doesn't work that way. If you push him away now you'll lose him forever, he needs you now more than ever and I know you know this too. If he had been better off without you, he would have already walked away, and you know that!" She hates when her brother is right, which, unluckily for her is almost always. "I know I do. I just needed to let it all out, I'll let you go back to sleep and call more often," she tells him. "Night sis" were his last words before hanging up. She switches the phone to vibrate and tries to get some sleep.

Waking up early, she gets dressed and heads for the hospital. Who knows, maybe they'll let her see Freddie this time. Luck was not on her side, the doctor tells her that he's still in intensive care and wouldn't be able to visit him yet. They tell her that she'll have to be patient and wait a few more days. She doesn't want to go home just yet and at the same time she doesn't wanna see anyone. She's not in the mood to be around people, not even her supposed friends. There's something else that's bothering her. Something she couldn't even bring herself to tell Tony, but she needs to find out if she has a real reason to worry or if it's just a result of too much stress. She goes to the drugstore, asking for what she needs and then quickly leaves. She can't take it here. Not even at home either. As she's walking she realizes the perfect place to go.

There's a knock on the door and as Karen opens it, she's surprised to see Effy. "Effy, what are you doing here? Is anything wrong with Freds?" she quickly starts to say, panic appearing on her face. Effy reassures her telling her that she had stopped by the hospital but the doctors still wouldn't let her see him. "I've come here to get some books from his room, if you don't mind." Karen opens the door a little more to let her in. Effy quickly goes upstairs but instead of going into her boyfriend's room she slips into the bathroom. If this wasn't a giant mess she would say that taking the test here was almost poetic, but its a giant mess and there's nothing poetic about a huge mess. She quickly pees on the stick and waits the two minutes for the results shows up. Picking it up all she can say is, "Fuck."


	5. Chapter 5

_Chapter 5:_

It's been two weeks since Jack and Kate decided they'd get married with a small ceremony. They have managed to arrange it all even with such short amount of time, with the help of Margot and Sun. Kate is getting ready for the ceremony, her dress fits her perfectly, the make up is on and the only thing that should be done is her hair. She hasn't decided yet if she wants the hair up or if she wants them all loose, she tries various different combinations before deciding to leave them loose. In the other room Jack has already finished all he needed to do. He's quite nervous, he can't believe their day is finally here. Hurley tries to distract him with random anecdotes from their days on the island but Jack's head is already at the end of the aisle, picturing himself waiting for his fiancée. His daydreaming is interrupted by Hurley's announcement that is time to go. He's glad he has chosen Hurley as his best man, he's always been a supporter of him and Kate and this wedding was like an early birthday present for him.

Jack takes his place under the gazebo where the ceremony is gonna happen, he can't wait to see Kate in her beautiful dress. Kate's ready, Sun announces it's time for the bride to show up and be admired in all her beauty, Kate doesn't need to be told twice, she's dying to become Mrs Shephard. She takes her bouquet and she heads for the garden. She looks for her father, she can't walk on her aisle by herself, a bride needs her father. He has been waiting for her right before the aisle starts, he offers her his arm and they start walking. All she can see is Jack waiting for her, he's gorgeous in his suit and he's all hers. Jack can't believe how breathtaking she is in that dress, coming right towards him, ready to be his for life. Sam lifts up her veil and kisses her on the forehead before leaving her to Jack, who takes her hand and they face the minister together.

The ceremony starts and it's very quick but emotional, they keep looking at each other like they're in their own world and they just briefly reconnect with the rest of the world when the ministers asks Jack "Do you, Jack Shephard, take this woman, Katherine Anne Austen, to be your wife? Do you promise to love her in sickness and in health, in richness and poorness? Do you promise to love her until death tear you apart?" His voice is strong and loud when he says "I do". The minister now turns to Kate "Do you, Katherine Anne Austen, take this man, Jack Shephard, to be your husband? Do you promise to love him in sickness and in health, in richness and poorness? Do you promise to love him until death tear you apart?", Kate's voice is shaking but she manages to says "I do" and they just smile at each other. The minister finishes the ceremony proclaiming them husband and wife and inviting Jack to kiss Kate, he doesn't need to be told twice, he kisses her very sweetly and then they turn to face their families and friends. They walk the aisle together and they're surrounded by all the people who want to congratulate them. After they have received all the congratulations they head for the banquet so they can all start eat. All the guests kept eating all afternoon and after it was time for some dancing, Jack and Kate started the dancing on the song of their first date. She can't help but notice he has definitely improved his dancing skills and she points it out "You must have taken lessons because the last time I see you dancing you were all over my feet Mr Shephard" and she starts laughing, his reply is almost instantaneous "Oh really? So I can't mock your absent cooking skills but you can mock my dancing ones Mrs Shephard?". They both keep laughing and dancing until it's time to say goodbye to their guests and start their honeymoon.

They go upstairs to pack the last few things, take a cab to LAX and they're ready to go. Jack goes buy something to drink while they're waiting to catch their plane, a coffee for him and a tea for her, caffeine is not good for the baby. Gosh, it almost sounds unbelievable, that in seven months they'll have a baby so they surely won't be newlyweds for very long. Jacks bring the tea to Kate but she looks at it with the strangest face ever. Jack asks her "Kate, what's wrong? Don't you like tea?" Kate shakes her head, "No, I do like it, but I need to stay awake. It's a long flight Jack and we don't have much luck with planes, do you remember?" she says clearly alluding to their airplane crash that three years ago gave them a chance to meet and fall in love. Jack understands her but he can't give in "Babe, I know but caffeine is not good for the baby. If you want I won't have coffee either and we can fall asleep together or I can have this coffee, stay awake and look over you and the baby, what do you say?". This sounds ok to her "Ok, but I want you to wake me if you have even a remotely feeling that something is gonna happen ok?" He nods and realizes it's time to get on the plane. They go hand in hand through the gate and get on the plane. They wait for it to start flying then Kate, exhausted, falls asleep on Jack's shoulder.


	6. Chapter 6

_Chapter 6:_

"Fuck! This is not happening, this can't be happening". Effy keeps repeating this while pacing around Freddie's bathroom, she actually closes her eyes, hoping that when she'll open them there will be a minus sign on the stick replacing the current plus one. She opens her eyes but nothing is changed, she curses herself and Freddie for not be careful enough, for their eagerness to make love and now she is in this big mess, well actually they are if she ever decides to tell him. She has to get out of there, she's been long enough and she doesn't want to make Karen suspicious. She gets out and she makes a quick deviation before heading out. She enters into Freddie's room, it all looks like the last time she was here when she has come to visit him after she got out of the clinic the first time. The same day she got herself in this huge mess. She wanders around a little, observing several photos: almost all are of Freds and his mom and some are of them too. She knows how close Freddie and his mother were but she probably doesn't still realize how hard all this must have been for Freddie, he had to go through all the pain and craziness twice, first with his mum then with her. He lost once and he had come close to lose again. She takes one last look at the pictures and she gets out of the house.

She walks home slowly, she has no rush to get there. She wants to think about this but another part of her just wants to forget this is real and that it won't go away no matter how hard she wants it to. Her phone buzzes, it's Panda but she's not in the mood to deal with her so she simply reject the call. Not a minute goes by and her phones rings again. This time is Katie, she's not answering her either, then it's Naomi's turn but she still doesn't pick up, Cook tries to call too but she has had enough and she simply shuts her phone down. She has enough issues without having to deal with all her friends. She finally arrives home and craws into bed holding Freddie's shirt as a blanket, her safe blanket, she closes her eyes and tries not to think.

Days go by and she follows the same routine. She gets up, barely eats anything, just what she needs to keep herself up, goes to the hospital and tries unsuccessfully to see Freddie. Afterwards she stops by his house to hang out a little in his room. She feels safe there, it's like being with Freddie, then she finally comes home and crawls into her bed. It's been almost a week of this patter when one morning something changes, the curtains in her room are suddenly opened and the light hits her and wakes her up. She swears "What the fuck is going on?" Turning around she can only see a bunch of people, she is still half asleep but she can clearly identify who says "This has to stop now. Get your ass out of that bed, we're taking you out", it's Katie. Effy wonders what on earth Katie is doing at her place and who's with her. She rubs her eyes and now she can see clearly that the whole gang is here, she wishes they would go back to where they came from and let her sleep more but they're not giving up. Naomi is pulling her out of bed, helping her to stand steady while Panda brings her some breakfast. "Pandapops is worried Effy, you have to eat, I've made poptarts for you" she says while offering her food. She could fight it, bitch about it and then eventually give up or she could give in just now and save herself and the others a lot of fuss, so she eats.

After she finishes breakfast the guys step out to let her put some clothes on, while dressing she can't help but asking with a little panic in her voice "Why are you all here? Why today? Is something wrong with Freddie?" Emily answers her "No, Effy. Freddie is still sleeping and he's still stable. Karen called Cook yesterday, she told him what you do every day and she is concerned for you. Cook called Naomi and we called everyone else, so we're here to help keep your mind off". She's dressed now and they're heading out of the room to catch up with the boys when she says "You know it's useless right? Nothing can take my mind off the shits in my life". She doesn't get any reply but Panda hugs her, she can't look at the gang without noticing how incomplete they are without Freds. Then she notice something else that upsets her, JJ is holding a baby. It's like the universe is getting revenge on her and laughing about it, first her boyfriend is almost killed, then she finds out that she's pregnant and now a baby is thrown in her face, she can't keep it inside. "JJ, what are you doing with that thing? Who is he?" JJ is a little taken aback by her harsh tone but he manages to reply excited "Effy meet Albert, this is Lara's son, she's my girlfriend. I forgot you haven't meet her yet, well I can introduce her to you when I'll present her to Freds". Effy shakes her head, she's not crazy, they are. They act like everything is freaking normal when it's all falling apart. Freddie is alone in an hospital room fighting for his life, she's knocked up and she has no clue of what she should do and they talk about stuff as girlfriends and going out. She's about to send them all to hell when her phone rings, it's Karen. She quickly gets the call "Effy, I think you should get to the hospital soon" is all she can hear before starting to sob.


	7. Chapter 7

_Chapter 7:_

Jack gently shakes Kate to wake her up, the flight has landed safely and it's time to check into their hotel. She yawns a little and then she makes a quick stop to the bathroom while Jack gets ready to get off the plane, they have to take a cab to the station and then they have to take a train for Bristol. He couldn't find any nice hotel in London with such a short notice so he had to book outside the City and they'll have to go back and forth for their trips. Kate comes out of the toilet and they get off the plane. Jack calls for a cab, they have a tight schedule, so they can't miss their train. Luckily they get a cab right away and they're at the station in the blink of an eye and their train is ready to leave and take them right where they should be. The train has a sleeping effect on Kate, Jack can only hope she won't be asleep for the whole honeymoon or he'll be spending on his own. He close his eyes a little, he's very tired too and they won't be in Bristol for another three hours.

* * *

Once the train has arrived Kate is the first one to wake up, she watches Jack sleeping so peacefully, she wishes she could let him sleep a little more but they have to get off the train and check in into the hotel. She gives him a little kiss to wake him up gently, her method works and they're ready to get off the train. The hotel is less than five minutes away and Jacks takes all their suitcases and they walk toward it. Once there Kate proceeds to check in while Jack takes all their stuff in their room and starts unpacking, Kate catches up with him and she helps him unpack. The time difference is starting to hit them, so Kate prepares the bed while Jack takes out their pajamas, they brush their teeth together, get into their pajamas and they cuddle a little until they fall asleep while they're still holding each other.

* * *

The following morning they're woken up by room service, Jack gets the door and Kate tries to cover her eyes with the blanket, she doesn't wanna wake up just yet. He brings her breakfast in bed and caresses her face to convince her to get up "Hey love, aren't you a little hungry? Come on, we have a long day ahead us, we have to get the train to London". She reluctantly starts eating only because Jack is feeding her and she enjoys being taken care of. After breakfast they get dressed and they head for the station where they catch their train. After three hours they arrive to London, their first stop is Buckingham Palace, where they hope to assist to guards' switch. After that they head for the Big Ben which Kate poses next to for the most ridiculous photos and then they buy two sandwiches and have a little picnic in St James' Park where they take tons of photos. After they've rested a little in the park they pay a visit to the British Museum, more for Jack than for Kate, in fact Kate keeps asking "Babe, are we done yet?" Jack asks back "Why? Are you tired?" She shakes her head and adds "No, it's just that I wanna do some shopping. I need a pretty new dress and your baby thinks mommy needs a dress too" while hugging him and laughing a little. Jack is amused and a little shocked "Are you using the baby card already? Isn't it a little soon honey? Ok, daddy agrees with the baby, mummy can have a pretty dress, let's go I know exactly the place" he says taking her hand and getting out of the museum. He calls for a cab and tells the driver to take them to Harrods. Kate is so excited, she has heard it's one of the biggest shops in all London, and Jack is taking her there. The cab doesn't take long, Jack pays the driver and they get into the store, it's huge and Kate feels like she could live in there forever. They ask for help to reach the woman's maternity department. Kate looks at all the dresses while Jack excuses himself to go to the bathroom and he rapidly disappears. Kate tries on several clothes and Jack is still nowhere to be seen, she has no idea where he is and she really wants his opinion on which dress to pick. Jack's sudden appearance puts a stop on her wanderings and she shows him three dresses but he can't really decide which one should they pick, so he simply suggests "Why don't we buy all three of them? So we don't have to decide which one to take". Kate cannot believe him, one day married and he's already spoiling her "Ok, if you say so I won't complain". He pays then they go out, their train won't leave for another hour and half so Jack suggests "Are you hungry? I feel like having an ice-cream, do you want one?" she simply nods. They get their ice-creams, head for the station and take their train. They both fall asleep, it's been a long, intense day.

* * *

Once in Bristol they hurry to the hotel where they have a nice dinner and afterwads they decided to take a little walk, fresh air never hurts. Kate's arm is intertwined with Jack's one and suddenly Jack stops walking and takes something out of his pocket, it's a very small present. Kate shots him a puzzled look and he explains "When we were at Harrods today I disappeared but I didn't go to the bathroom. I wanted to get you a baby present, it's not really a present as much as a reminder of what lays ahead us". He hands the package over to Kate, she opens it and it's a pacifier. She's speechless, her eyes are all teary, this is so Jack, giving her something like that. Before she realizes it the pacifier slips from her hands and she collapses to the ground, the last thing she hears is Jack screaming "Kate!".


	8. Chapter 8

_Chapter 8:_

She closes her phone, she feels a little dizzy, she looks like she's going to faint any minute. Karen hasn't basically said anything on the phone and her mind is left wondering a million different things: if he has woken up, if he is alright, if anything bad happened to him. She stops sobbing, she holds on to Katie, hoping not to fall on the ground and she screams at her "I need to get me to the hospital, take me to Freddie!". Katie escorts her to the car, the others follow them because they want to go too but Katie shakes her head letting them know it's not a good idea. The hospital is less than ten minutes from Effy's place but right now it feels like she's going to LA, "Katie, can't you go faster?" she asks but she doesn't get a response because she notices that Katie is parking, they're here. Before she can get off the car, Katie grabs her arm to stop her "Eff, I'm not coming because whatever is going on is for his family and you only. So I'm going back to your place and when you want to come home, you just give me a call or text me ok?". Eff can only nod before getting out of the car. She's nervous as she slowly walks toward the entrance of the hospital, she doesn't need to ask for directions, she knows how to get to Freddie's room better than she knows herself. Karen and his dad are outside the room, as soon as Karen spots her she runs toward her and she hugs Effy. She whispers, "He's awake. They are running a lot of tests, but they're letting us see him soon enough". Effy hugs her back.

Two hours later she is still sitting in the waiting room holding Freddie's necklace in her hand, her phone had been buzzing the whole time but she kept rejecting the calls. She goes to the bathroom for the millionth time, this is getting ridiculous: first she almost faints in front of the gang, then she keeps going to the bathroom since she arrived here, next thing she knows she'll be throwing up all over Freddie's family just to make it clear they understand she's pregnant. When she comes back no one is there anymore, the doctors probably let them visit Freds. She doesn't go to his room though, it's a family moment and she doesn't belong there, not yet. She sits and waits, seems like since this whole nightmare started all she's is doing is waiting, waiting for the ambulance to get Freddie, waiting for his surgeries, waiting to see him, waiting for news, waiting to find out about the baby, waiting for things to get better; all this waiting is really getting on her nerves. Her train of thoughts is abruptly stopped by Karen's voice "Eff, dad and I are going, the doctors said we can't spend the night so we thought of giving you two a little time together ". Her response is a slight nod before she starts walking to his room. She's scared, she's scared that Freddie will blame her and drive her away, she's scared that after what they've been through her love won't be enough. She tries to remind herself who she is, she's Effy Stonem and for once in her entire life she's scared to death, but she is ready to face her fears so she steps forward. She can spot her boyfriend now, he's still a bit messed up but at least he's in one piece. She feels the throat go sour when she says "Hey" He turns to the source of the voice and his eyes light up when he sees her, in that instant all her fears disappear: his look says it all. She comes closer and takes his hand between hers and she simply smiles at him before adding "I would ask you how you're feeling but that would be a pointless question. So I'll ask if it's ok for me to be here or you don't want to see me" He shakes his head "Effy, I know what you're thinking. It's not your fault. Not fucking one bit, alright? He was a freak, Eff, we couldn't know he'd do anything like this". She knows but still just looking at him laying in the hospital makes her feel so guilty. She brushes some hairs from his forehead, a familiar gesture and yet so new, she sits next to him and she continues to hold his hand without talking, their silence is not uncomfortable, it's just the expression of the peace due to be in each other's company. Freddie breaks the spell by asking her "Did the doctors say anything to you? Because I can't feel almost anything and I don't know if it's normal or not after what they did to me"? She answers right back "No, they didn't. I only know they did a lot of tests and they'll tell your dad when they know something" She just tightens her grip on his hand, he knows she is trying to reassure him but he can tell that something is wrong with him but he won't upset her. She doesn't wanna leave his side, she hopes the nurses won't check his room so they won't know she's here. Freddie starts to laugh and Effy is puzzled, she can't possibly think of any reason to laugh right now, he explains "I'm not crazy. I just realized you and I have a thing for hospitals, didn't you notice?" she laughs a little too, maybe laughing will help. She wonders if she should tell him about what she'd found out and after a little internal struggle she starts speaking "Freddie, there's something I think you should know…" but she's abruptly cut short by the opening of the door.


	9. Chapter 9

_Chapter 9:_

"Kate! Kate!" is all Jack can say while trying to understand what's wrong with her. He notices a little pool of blood on the sideway where she has just collapsed, he closes his eyes and prays that there's not something wrong with her or the baby. He quickly gets out his phone and asks for an ambulance. He'd have taken her to the hospital himself but he has no car or the slightest idea where the hospital is. He picks up the pacifier, hoping that this little thing didn't just jinx their luck, he puts it in her purse and he tries to pick her up, so at least she won't be on the ground. The ambulance has just arrived and the paramedics take his wife out of his arms. He feels powerless, he wants to do something to fix this but he has no idea of how to interpret the symptoms of a bleeding pregnant woman, he just knows it's very dangerous and she'd very likely lose the baby.

He gets in the ambulance and the paramedics ask him all kind of questions about Kate but he can't keep thinking straight, all he can think is that his wife and his baby are not all right, and that he wants to help. He interrupt the paramedics to say "I'm a spinal surgeon, Jack Shephard, this is my wife, Kate Austen Shephard, she's 9 weeks pregnant and her blood type is 0, like mine if you need a transfusion. Is there anything I can do to help?" One of them is taking care of Kate, checking her vital signs and monitoring her heartbeat while the other answers Jack "No, there isn't Doctor Shephard, you just have to let us take care of your wife, we're almost arriving at the hospital". He didn't get to finish his sentence because the ambulance stops.

They take Kate inside and instruct Jack to wait in the waiting room. Jack is not good at waiting, not when there is so much at stake like the life of his family, he tries not to think at what they're doing to his Kate so he takes a good look around. He's not alone in this limbo, waiting, a lot of people are waiting too, but his attention is caught by a young girl. She can't be more than 17 years old and she looks like her heart had been ripped out her chest, a little bit like he's feeling right now, and he can't help but wonder why she is here, maybe a relative or a friend. She gets up, goes out of the room and comes back after a couple of minutes. He looks at her again and notice's she's holding something in her hand, something that he can't see, and this time he definitely knows by the look on her face that she's waiting for news about her boyfriend or someone she's in love with. Only someone deeply in love would have a look like that on their face in a hospital, he knows this because he has that same look on his face now and because he knows a little about hospitals. The girl is approached by another one, a little older, who whispers something to her, then the girl gets up and goes away toward one of the rooms, and he hopes for her sake that everything it will be alright.

* * *

Two more hours pass and still he had heard no news about Kate. He's starting to get really worried, so he stops one of the nurses to ask her about his wife but she simply tells him to wait for a doctor. He can't be still, he starts pacing around the room, he feels caged in here, powerless, useless. He moves to the corridors in order to spot some doctors and he can see a couple of ones busy discussing something. He slowly approaches but stops when he hears what they're talking about "The kid is lucky to be alive…", "His spine is a mess, if we don't touch him he won't ever walk again…", "And if we do touch him he might die, he's pretty messed up". Jack is stunned, those doctors have no balls at all, they'd let a kid be a paralytic all his life just because they're afraid to get involved, he hopes these doctors won't even lay eyes on Kate's chart. If he weren't worried sick for his wife and on his honeymoon he'd even offered his service to this hospital, that kid deserves a chance, but things are already complicated enough without him getting involved in a surgery in another continent. Sickened by these doctors he gets back to the waiting room, a doctor is there calling for him and he rushes to him and introduces himself "Good evening doctor. I'm Doctor Jack Shephard, are you treating my wife?" He nods and adds "Doctor Shephard your wife seems ok, she is carrying a risky pregnancy, she just had a minor collapse and a little loss of blood, but the she's still carrying. I'd advise to reduce the stress to a minimum, any kind of it" Jack can only nod, he's a little bit more relaxed, Kate and the baby will be fine, but something hits him and he so he has to ask "Doctor, my wife and I are here on honeymoon, will it be safe for her to fly back to LA?" The doctor is taken aback, he hadn't seen this one coming, he simply says "No, I'm afraid it won't. A flight that long is a great deal of stress and she could miscarry. If it were a shorter flight I might not be so against it but a flight like that is too stressful for her body to handle" Jack feels lost, he needs to make sure there's no other way "So what are you saying exactly?", the doctor simply replies "I'm just saying that your honeymoon will be seven months long".


	10. Chapter 10

_Chapter 10:_

The door opens and two doctors enter Freddie's room, Effy's words die in her throat, looks like she won't be telling him the truth anytime soon, and anyway she should be one hundred percent sure before telling him. Freddie looks toward them, they do not look like they're bearing good news, he waits for them to drop the bomb, he can feel it, he won't like it, not one little bit. One of the doctors looks at his chart and he says "Freddie McClair right? Well we have some things we'd like to discuss with you, but we need your family here" Freddie quickly interrupts him "Doctor, my family is home, they weren't allowed to spend the night, I'd rather not call them now but I want to know anyway if it's possible". Effy can't help but wonder if they'll let her stay by his side if they decide to tell them, whatever they want tell him is not going to be pleasant otherwise they'd have already told him by now. The doctor speaks again "Mr McClair, we really want to share this news with your family, it's something you don't wanna hear when you're alone" Freddie is getting all warmed up now "I'm not alone. My girlfriend is here with me, don't you see?", the doctor can see he's getting nervous and tries to calm down by gently explaining "She can't stay here any longer. It's time for her to go, and she couldn't hear the news from us anyway. We're obliged to tell the family, no one else" He can't believe these doctors would leave him wondering all night about what's wrong with him, all alone nevertheless. Effy doesn't give him the time to answer the doctor, she asks him right away "Is it possible for me to spend the night here? He can't be alone! I promise it'll be like I'm not even here", her sad eyes and the messed up situation of the kid convince the doctors to let this one go. "Ok, you can stay here, but we're not discussing Freddie's situation without his family ok?" She simply nods.

As soon as they doctors get out of the room, two nurses get in, they adjust Freddie in the bed, he still can't move after all the surgeries, they pretend they haven't seen Effy and they wish Freddie goodnight. Finally alone they try not to think about the big elephant in the room, they've just go through the night. Freddie is dying to know what Effy was going to tell him before the doctors interrupted them "Eff, you were trying to say something before, what was it about?" She's surprised, she didn't think he'd bring this up, especially when they're trying to not to worry about the possible news. She simply dismisses it "I was just about to say that I took your necklace, and that I love you" , he chuckles "Good thing you've got my necklace, I thought I lost it. It's getting late, we're probably very tired, we should get some sleep", she nods "You sleep, I'll watch over you", he is not accepting this "Eff, come next to me, the bed will be enough for the both of us, we both need to sleep". Freddie was right, as almost as always, she needs some sleep. It's been the longest day ever and so she gets on his bed, crawls next to him, she lays her head on his chest, careful not to hurt him, and he kisses the top of her head.

* * *

That night they both dream: Freddie dreams of Effy, she's running in the field and he's chasing her, it's just like before, only there're no demons to fight this time, only them being young and carefree. He feels like their happiness can't be taken away, not even if someone tried. Effy's dreams are quite different, they're full of babies, like twenty of them, of different ages and they all scream and cry. She tries to calm them down but it's pointless. One little girl comes close to her, her eyes are like Freddie's ones, she can't be more than three years old, she's the cutest among all, and she looks a lot like her when she was little. The girl comes even closer and tells her "Mama, why don't you want me? Don't you and papy love me?". Her little eyes are filled with tears and she looks like she'll start to cry any minute, Effy suddenly wakes up. She's sweating, she looks to see if she has woken up her boyfriend too but luckily he's still asleep, one less thing to worry about. Her dreams have shaken her up but also confirmed to her that her heart is conflicted, her subconscious is trying to tell her not shut Freddie out of this, he has a say in this too. She promises herself she would search for a gynecologist first thing in the morning, she has to be sure then she'll tell Freddie. She can't fall asleep anymore, she's afraid that if she closes her eyes she'll see her daughter, or at least what her subconscious thinks is hers, cry and she can't bear it again. She checks the clock, it's morning afterall, she gets up, careful not to wake Freds, and she goes out of the room. She asks one of the nurses, not the ones in charge of her boyfriend, "Excuse me, where can I find a gynecologist?", she answers "Our gynecologist , Doctor Whits, is taking care of risky pregnancy, if you want to talk to her to make an appointment you'll need to go to room 2348 where she's taking care of Mrs Shephard".


End file.
